Deal Of A Lifetime: Free Use Of My Equipment Package For A Great Script

P

Prodigi Pictures

Carbonite Member
I've been thinking about this for a long time. I've also been searching for the right place to post this.

Prodigi Rentals wants to help you make your short movie. We have everything someone needs to make a top notch short movie. We already have the lowest prices in the US, and all our customers qualify for the New Mexico 25% rebate (just walk through the steps on our website and the New Mexico government will cut you a check for 25% of whatever you paid us.)

One of you deserves to tell your story, regardless of your financial circumstances. You've crafted a great short script. You care about great acting. You've made no-budget short projects and you are ready to make a quality project. You deserve a Hollywood size lighting package with 5K's and 2K's. You deserve professional sound gear, matte boxes for your camera, a dolly, 20 inch Hi Def monitors, green screens and a fig rig. You've got a GREAT short script and you're willing to do the hard work but you don't have access to the gear. That's about to change.

We want to help you make your movie by letting you use all our gear for 1 week for free. We'll also consult on the project for free. We'll teach you how we cast our project, secured locations and found a crew.

To see how much gear we have, check out www.prodigirentals.com.

There will be appropriate restrictions. As examples, your shoot needs to be during a slow rental period so it doesn't conflict with paying customers and you'll need proper insurance. However, by using our gear for free you'll be reducing the cost of making a movie tremendously.

Please wait to send me your scripts. First, I need some advice on how to structure this so that it is fair. I want the most deserving person to win...the person who is damn serious about making a great movie and can demonstrate it with a script as well as their plan of execution. I want the winner to be someone everyone in the DVX community is cheering for.

What are your suggestions? How do we make this fair?
 
Last edited:
That’s an amazingly generous offer. Kudos to you guys for helping out struggling filmmakers like this.

I don’t want to rain on anyone’s parade, but it seems like you might have a hard time finding someone to take advantage of this opportunity who doesn’t live in New Mexico. Once someone pays for transportation to Albuquerque plus the cost of getting a motel room and buying their food for a week they would have spent pretty close to what they would have spent on renting equipment in their own home town.

With that said, you might want to try turning this into a contest. I would attract some local sponsors in order to provide a place for the winner to stay in town during the shoot, plus some money for food and transportation to Albuquerque. I would then get some other local film pros to help out (for instance a casting director to help with casting, a location manager to secure shooting locations, etc) and bill this as a way to generate more interest in New Mexico filmmaking. If it’s managed right you could generate a lot of industry press.

As far as picking the winner, I would have people submit a video essay about how shooting their film in New Mexico with your equipment can help them create a better film. If you wanted to, you could even have people pay an entrance fee with their submissions.

Of course you might not want to do anything this complicated to manage, but I thought I would throw this out there.

By the way, checked out your website. You guys have great prices. I’m putting together some financing to shoot a short film that is an adaptation of a Jack London story. When I get everything put together, if I am able to get out to New Mexico I will give you a call.
 
Mr Blue -

I agree that if there is an entrance fee we'll have the budget for some of the director's expenses. That's a good idea. What do other people think?

That wasn't the original idea...but that's also why I'm seeking advice from the entire DVXUser Community.

If someone offered me access to $100,000.00 worth of gear for 1 week for free I'd fly just about anywhere to use it. Between JetBlue, Southwest Air and Motel 6 one can easily travel all across the country for peanuts.

However, I understand that not everyone thinks this way. I'm often surprised how many people are intimidated by traveling. And most people believe the myth that travel is expensive.

I think this is a shame. I've done amazing vacations in Tibet, Mexico, Canada, Hong Kong, Mainland China, India and throughout the US...rarely do I spend more than $1,000.00 for all my expenses. Maybe I'm just really cheap. I'd like to believe I'm good at bargain hunting.

Anyways, I'm open to your proposed solutions.
 
Last edited:
Mr Blue -

Thanks for your comments about our prices! We're less expensive than anyone in the US. Many of our items can be shipped inexpensively as well. And remember, renting from us entitles you to a 25% rebate on all your expenses, including shipping, from the New Mexico state government.

But I digress...this thread is about making this "contest" appealing to the best independent filmmaker out there. Any help with shaping this will be greatly appreciated.
 
Granted, it's a great offer, but I don't understand the logistical problems your having. Seems simple to me. You advertise in all the standard film forums and craigslist that the best script wins. You provide an e-mail address to send the shorts to (along with a release form) and there you have it. Choose the one you want and get on with it.

If your looking for sincerity or whatever, insure they send you a cover letter along with the submission.

By the way, do you have any financial or ownership stake in the final product?

Good luck.
 
alveraz said:
Granted, it's a great offer, but I don't understand the logistical problems your having. Seems simple to me. You advertise in all the standard film forums and craigslist that the best script wins. You provide an e-mail address to send the shorts to (along with a release form) and there you have it. Choose the one you want and get on with it.

If your looking for sincerity or whatever, insure they send you a cover letter along with the submission.

By the way, do you have any financial or ownership stake in the final product?

Good luck.
Click to expand...

Alveraz -

I'm perfectly capable of making a unilateral decision. Considering this is a community I thought I'd consider a few other opinions as well. Anyone can create a subjective contest. This is an opportunity for fellow filmmakers to say "Do X. That's more fair. Do Y. That's based on merit."

I want to ensure that a WORTHY filmmaker (not sincere, there are plenty of sincere people who have no skill) is chosen.

I'm sure you've heard of Project Greenlight and The Lot. What did you feel was unfair about their selection process?
 
Look at their track record - ask to see either a reel or maybe one completed project along with it...

Best way to judge a persons worth IMO, because let's be honest, everybody has a "great idea", but the people that do something about it and can pull it off are in a whole nother ballgame
 
WOW!

I want to ensure that a WORTHY filmmaker (not sincere, there are plenty of sincere people who have no skill) is chosen.
Click to expand...

Amen

What a fabulous opportunity! And yeah, your pricing is excellent - will be giving you a call.

Isn't there some saying about youth being wasted on the young? Were I king for a day, I'd want to see

1. A detailed treatment if not a complete script - after all, you're opening up a whole new world of whats possible for many.

2. A very detailed battle plan - budget, crew list, venues, talent requirements, shooting schedule, effects and all those zillion other things which must be meticulously planned and never seem to survive the first day . . .

3. Some sort of reel showing they know how to tell a story and which end of the camera the light goes in . . .

. . . The real key here I'd be looking for is both talent and feasibility - does the person have a grasp of the reality of what it takes to successfully pull it off? Aside from your equipment, which is huge, do they have the wherewithall to take advantage of the opportunity and carry through? They'll need to understand you're providing equipment, not taking on the role of Producer and Angel - or you're gonna need a much larger mail room.

This is just totally huge - "you will receive the Order of Lenin for this" (Hunt for Red October). Thanks and best wishes just doesn't cut it.
 
Pixelated -

I'm thrilled you recognize this opportunity. So far, it doesn't seem like many on this site fully understand what I want to give away.
 
That is a great offer. What gave you this idea? I've often thought that if more people on forums like this pooled together their resources, a lot of films could be made very cheaply.

However, having done a few location shoots, I have to agree with Mr. Blue. The costs of transporting and housing a dozen or more people can add up to far beyond equipment rentals very quickly. Plus, being limited to the area of New Mexico is probably a problem for a lot of scripts.

That said, one of my partners is actually from Albuquerque and has several scripts that we hope to get around to shooting in the near future. We have a fair amount of gear ourselves but operating out of your shop would be a better idea by a long shot.

Cheers!
 
I understand that people's perception is there are many expensive hurdles to shooting outside their home town...however, forgive me for repeating myself, the perception is not accurate.

FINDING A CREW:
1.) Craig's List, which is free, is often used in New Mexico (as well as the rest of the country) to find free or inexpensive crew members.
2.) The University of New Mexico (UNM) and [SIZE=-1]the Central New Mexico Community College (CNM) have film programs with students who want to crew on movies for free. CNM's program is the largest of it's kind in the country...it's focus is on training CREW, not filmmakers, and every student must complete several hundred hours of work on independent films FOR FREE in order to graduate from the program, become certified and join the local union. Call the NM film office to get the contact information for both schools, as well as all 4 colleges that participate in this vast, state-wide training program.

FINDING HOUSING:
1.) Assuming you've found your crew the way I described above, the only person you have to house is yourself. Perhaps you have a partner or a best friend who is DPing the project for you. Regardless, you aren't housing 20 people...you're housing 1-3. Albuquerque has tons of inexpensive motels, many below 50 bucks a night. Albuquerque has extended stay hotels, many costing $180.00 a week. Albuquerque has furnished apartments for $400.00 per month.

CASTING: Cast here in New Mexico. Or, cast in Los Angeles (which I've done and would love to teach people how to do this) and fly your actors to New Mexico on Southwest's direct flight for $250.00 round trip.

REBATES: And, as I said before, EVERY PENNY that you spend in New Mexico counts towards your state rebate check. If you spend $500.00 on lodging, travel and food then you'll be getting a $125.00 check from the New Mexico government.

SCRIPT LIMITATIONS AN ILLUSION: New Mexico is currently the hottest market in the US. Over 60 Hollywood feature films will be shot in the state this year. MovieMaker Magazine rated it the 4th best city for independent filmmaking. It isn't one vast desert...you can find forests, snow-capped mountains, cities, rivers, small towns, locations for westerns, science fiction, fantasy and any other genre you can think of. The state maintains an abandoned prison AS A SET for filmmakers. Want an authentic gas chamber for a set? Call the film office. Want to use the Western sets from "All The Pretty Horses?" They're still standing, ready to be used. Want vast interiors that you can modify to anything you want? Just call the film office...the list is so vast, that Hollywood is flocking to this state.

COSTS: As was suggested earlier, and agreed with by me, if we charge an entry fee we'll have enough to cover most, if not all, of the winner's expenses. So, if you choose to not believe anything I've said above but you believe the previous sentence then the problems are still resolved.

As I said in the original post, we want to ADVISE you as well as offer gear. I'm a filmmaker, people! Don't assume the worst. Why not assume that maybe JUST MAYBE we've dealt with transportation, finding crew, casting, food, props, costumes, permits and rebates?

I've done the math. Someone can complete a 15 minute short with our assistance here in New Mexico for about $1,000.00...and you'll be getting $250.00 of that returned to you by the state. And if we charge an entry fee, then we'll probably be able to cover 1K of expenses.

Perhaps I'm wasting my time. Maybe we should simply horde our gear to ourselves and not bother trying to help other filmmakers.
[/SIZE]
 
Last edited:
I sincerely hope people take advantage of this, worst that can happen is you don't win - you still hone your idea though..

Rockin!
 
It sounds like you ought to have been the NM representative at the Locations Trade Show I went to today!

However, I think it's only fair to make people aware of the potential risks. I'd take issue with a number of your points. As someone in LA, I would never, ever cast a film out of New Mexico, for instance. I'm sure there's some very talented people, but bitter experience (out of Atlanta, a much larger market) has taught me that you find your people face-to-face if you care. Same goes for most crew. I've met some good people as crew on-location, but also some really troublesome people... it's an X factor that I'd always prefer to avoid if necessary. So I'd say your points about crew and housing are naught. But that's me; I'm a perfectionist about the people I choose to work with.

Shooting away from your home base ALWAYS comes with complications. There's nothing wrong with it, I honestly love to shoot on location - in fact I'm about to do it in a foreign country for my spyfest film. But you need to think really carefully about what those complications (and costs) are, otherwise they can really threaten your whole shoot. Read the fine print, basically.
 
Prodigi, your kinda being weird, in my opinion. You keep saying stuff like, "why dosent anyone realize what we're doing for them?" And, "maybe I should just forget it and keep all my equipment to myself". I mean, dude that's kinda creepy.

First offf, you havent even declared how the logistics work in regards to entries yet. You mentioned you wanted feedback on how you could do this. It's been like 10 days and you've still made no attempt to open up for submissions, yet you want all this praise for your offer that dosent exist yet? That's weird man, think about it.

Am I missing something? Maybe I dindnt read the thread correctly, but that's my humble interpretation. When your ready to take submissions, I'm ready to submit. Till then I'll peak in here periodically to witness your frustration, and giggle :)
 
Sign me up! I'll put your equipment to great use for a week. I have an outstanding script that we have been looking for a prison set for. When i was reading the thread, i thought why isnt anyone jumping at this opp??? and then I read about the abondoned prison set....and now it makes perfect sense, you were waitng for me to respond. :)
Anyway, you can check my whole story at this link
http://eoimedia.com/news/archives/ln06.html
And I would love to hook up with the college students down there, I am currently touring the country speaking at universities and signing up students as volunteers for a youth focused non-profit org called Guns 4 Cameras.
please PM me, I am serious!
Just let me know when your slow time of year is.
thanks
all the best and thanks for offering this to the community in general.

alveraz, why you gotta be so skeptical...i would be a little mad myself that no one would respond to a free offer. i think he's being a nice guy and making a jesture in spirit of the independent filmmaker's struggle.
 
The only way to do it is to limit your own criteria, and then have an open submission process then weed it down based on your pre-existing criteria.

I would assume this could be similar to a scholarship -- In your original post you mentioned that if you had a great script and talent, but no money, you should be able to get access to the gear to make something really good.

How about limiting your contest to submissions from New Mexico, and projects that have partial financing (i.e. film will get down with or without your gear) and then just add additional value with your gear.

To be honest, I have found that gear is the least of my worries, and the least expensive part of making a film. In my experience its locations, food, props, art, etc. Renting 100,000 worth of gear has been rather easy and rather cheap.

So I say limit the criteria (poor people only, women, students, etc) and only support projects that have the support to pull off the other elements required to make it happen (art, cast, etc)

my 2 cents.

-- Dean
 
dougspice said:
It sounds like you ought to have been the NM representative at the Locations Trade Show I went to today!
Click to expand...

The film commission has done an excellent job of attracting big budget projects, but they don't understand how to court independent productions. I came here totally by accident...I was offered a great job as an art director for a video game studio.

However, once I arrived I was stunned to see how active the film production community is. 40 major feature films were shot here last year, there are sound stages being built in 3 locations and the incentives are the best in the country. It's less expensive to shoot in New Mexico than it is in Mexico. And, now that I've seen large portions of the state I'm stunned by how varied the terrain is. Lakes, rivers, forests...everything unexpected is available here as well as the typical "Young Guns" Wild West locations.

dougspice said:
However, I think it's only fair to make people aware of the potential risks. I'd take issue with a number of your points. As someone in LA, I would never, ever cast a film out of New Mexico, for instance.
Click to expand...

I think if you reread my message you'll see I specifically suggest casting in Los Angeles as well as casting in New Mexico.

Personally, I agree with you. I won't work with local actors. I've had too many poor experiences. And it is so inexpensive to cast out of LA that a micro-budget indie is shooting themselves in the foot if they don't explore LA's vast talent pool.

I mention casting in New Mexico only because it is an option...not an option I'd explore, but it is available.

dougspice said:
Same goes for most crew. I've met some good people as crew on-location, but also some really troublesome people... it's an X factor that I'd always prefer to avoid if necessary.
Click to expand...

This I fundamentally disagree with. New Mexico isn't like most states. There are over 1,500 union members here. They all had to complete 300 hours (or more) working for free before being certified. Four local colleges oversee a vast certification process with oversight by Hollywood consultants and a state agency. Those crews have met the standards of The Coen Brothers (who completed their last film here) as well as Wild Hogs, Little Miss Sunshine, BeerFest, The Astronaut Farmer, a ton of Lionsgate horror films, the pilot for The Sarah Conners Chronicles tv pilot and ABC Family's tv series Wildfire.

Should you hire a DP here? No. But, any below-the-line position is as skilled as any IATSE member in LA.

I understand your experience may be different, but if you haven't been here nor met with the local crews than passing judgement on them is nothing more than personal prejudice.

dougspice said:
So I'd say your points about crew and housing are naught. But that's me; I'm a perfectionist about the people I choose to work with.
Click to expand...

I'm a perfectionist as well. I'm not sure how housing entered the picture because you never mentioned housing except for the sentence above. I hope you'd reconsider your judgements about crew. Your experience is valid, but the facts are New Mexico has gone out of its way to create a skilled crew base. Sony Imageworks has already begun creating a special effects training program in the University of New Mexico and it will open it's doors in one year.

A local crew base capable of supporting 5 Hollywood features simulateously isn't your run-of-the-mill "local crew."

dougspice said:
Shooting away from your home base ALWAYS comes with complications. There's nothing wrong with it, I honestly love to shoot on location - in fact I'm about to do it in a foreign country for my spyfest film. But you need to think really carefully about what those complications (and costs) are, otherwise they can really threaten your whole shoot. Read the fine print, basically.
Click to expand...

I hope your shoot goes well. When you get back I hope you write a thread on how to produce a location production inexpensively. I've been thinking of doing the same.
 
Last edited:
Eye On It™ said:
Sign me up! I'll put your equipment to great use for a week. I have an outstanding script that we have been looking for a prison set for....alveraz, why you gotta be so skeptical...i would be a little mad myself that no one would respond to a free offer. i think he's being a nice guy and making a jesture in spirit of the independent filmmaker's struggle.
Click to expand...

Eye On It, thanks for the kind responses! Don't worry about Alveraz...he sent me a private message begging me to let him submit scripts now and I politely asked him to reread my first post, which stated were not yet accepting any submissions. Ever since my polite reminder he's decided the best way to win the grant is through insults. I'm not sure it is the best tactic...but I digress...

...Eye On It, I look forward to reading your script. I'll hammer out the details for the Equipment Grant within the next couple weeks. In the meantime, what do you think my criteria should be? How do we measure merit for a grant/contest like this?

And for the record, I'm DEFINITELY going to do this. What I'm hoping is that the savviest members of DVXUser will have some great ideas on how to measure:

1.) The ability execute a great script well.
2.) The willingness to redraft a script if it has weak elements.
3.) The fortitude to trudge through the difficult parts of making a great movie.
4.) Personal character...why are they making movies?

Screenplay is incredibly important, but I've spent so many years reading scripts and analyzing them that I'm not worried about that aspect. My partners and I will be able to tell which scripts are solid and which need too much work to consider for this grant/contest.

My favorite saying about making movies is that "you can't make a good movie from a bad script. Unfortunately, you can make a bad movie from a great script."

I'd like to avoid that. If someone is going to use this gear, I want to be able to measure their ability to execute a great script well.

Additionally, I'm leaning to including an entry fee. This would give the filmmaker the cash they need to fly to New Mexico. Depending on the number of entries, it might give them a lot more than that.
 
Whoa! Dude, did you really just say I begged you to take one of my scripts? I'm going to ask once very nicely, retract that lie immediately. I was being totally cool with you man, and never intended to insult you, on the contrary, this is a cool deal, I was simply pointing out a few inconsistencies with your direction. Coming back here and point blank lying about me and insulting my integrity is not going to help matters. Fix this. And to prove this guy is lying, this is a copy of the e-mail I supposedly 'begged him' in...

"Hey there, Do you have an e-mail? I'd like to shoot you a few shorts for consideration (your new offer). Thanks."

Dated 8:25am on 4/3/7, AND any moderator can feel free to verify this.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top